RIBA North West last night (Wednesday 20 April 2016) announced that ten projects were winners of 2016 RIBA Regional Awards, in recognition of their architectural excellence. Having shortlisted 17 buildings, the judging panel visited all shortlisted projects over a week in March and reached a decision to award 10 RIBA
Industry bodies give support to new BESA, ECA, and CBH survey Source link
Browser does not support script. Contact us The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is starting a new piece of work to find out what consumer and construction industry clients think of architects. A new ‘working with architects’ survey will be launched by RIBA Immediate Past President, Stephen Hodder MBE
Balfour Beatty has been awarded a £170m two-year extension to its Track Partnership contract for London Underground. Track Partnership, an alliance between Balfour Beatty Rail and London Underground, is responsible for delivering track renewal work across the London Underground network. Balfour Beatty Rail was appointed to the initial contract in
Two leading investing companies known as Seedrs and Intebridge have united their support with the 2017 exciting new China Innovation & Entrepreneurship International Competition. Not your ordinary school raffle, this particular competition offers awards to entrants valuing to figures of up to a billion pounds, with 64 cash bursaries in
London’s skyline is set to change as AXA Investment Managers – Real Assets, acting on behalf of its clients, commence the main build of the Twentytwo development on Bishopsgate, scheduled for completion in 2019. Otis, whose founder invented the safety elevator, is the world’s leading manufacturer and maintainer of people-moving
From time to time, you’ll need to deploy a lick of paint in your business. Whether it’s for aesthetic or practical reasons – or both – a coating of paint is often needed to provide the finishing touch to machinery, buildings, vehicles and a host of other things. Yet, this
The latest alarming revelations from the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) indicate that the amount of genuine building skills in the construction employee sector is getting worse as time goes by. The federal group found that the average British bricklayer is not the only one to suffer in the reduction
The stadia that host English premiership football matches are often seen as the physical representations of the titanic sporting and financial battles in one of the world’s most competitive leagues: the intimidating amphitheatre of the Etihad Stadium, the geometric confluence of the Emirates, the raucous intimacy of Selhurst Park and
RIBA North West last night (Wednesday 20 April 2016) announced that ten projects were winners of 2016 RIBA Regional Awards, in recognition of their architectural excellence. Having shortlisted 17 buildings, the judging panel visited all shortlisted projects over a week in March and reached a decision to award 10 RIBA Regional Awards at a prestigious ceremony hosted by BBC 6 Music’s Stuart Maconie at The Bluecoat in Liverpool, attended by members of the profession from across the North West. Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, Liverpool by BDP, took home the coveted North West Building of the Year Award, won last year by The Whitworth in Manchester by MUMA. The full list of winners (in alphabetical order): 1) Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, Liverpool by BDP 2) HOME, Manchester by Mecanoo 3) Library Walk Link Building, Manchester by SimpsonHaugh and Partners 4) Littlewoods Bunker, Liverpool by shedkm 5) Manchester Central Library, Manchester by Ryder Architecture 6) Mellor Primary School, Stockport by Sarah Wigglesworth Architects 7) National Graphene Institute, Manchester by Jestico + Whiles 8) Private House 1109, Cheshire by GA Studio Architects 9) Private House, Cumbria by Bennetts Associates 10) Wirral Metropolitan College, Wirral by Glenn Howells Architects In addition to the ten RIBA Regional Awards announced on the evening, projects were eligible to win one or more RIBA Regional Special Awards. The winners are: Building of the Year Award sponsored by Marley Eternit, – Alder Hey Children’s Hospital Client of the Year Award – Manchester City Council (for HOME, Library Walk Link Building and Manchester Central Library) Small Project of the Year Award (less than £500,000) – Private House 1109 Project Architect of the Year Award – Eleanor Brough, Sarah Wigglesworth Architects (for Mellor Primary School) Emerging Architect of the Year Award sponsored by Tarmac – GA Studio Architects (for Private House 1109) Conservation Award – Manchester Central Library Sustainability Award sponsored by Sika – Alder Hey Children’s Hospital North West Regional Jury Chair, Mushtaq Saleri, commented: “The 2016 North West Awards are testament to the strength of architecture in the region today. With a record number of entries even the shortlisting process was difficult, the judging even more so. “The judges were impressed by the dedication and commitment of the architects we met along the way, matched by clients who were clearly thrilled to have been involved in the special projects recognised by the visits. The vastly differing functions, scale, complexity and budgets make comparisons between the winning schemes impossible. The fact that we were equally moved by a delightful private residence and (in the same afternoon) a state-of-the-art laboratory facility proves that architects can have a positive influence in all areas of our lives. “It has been inspiring to have been privy to these remarkable buildings and to have shared the stories behind their conception and construction. We congratulate all the architects and design teams involved and in particular the clients who continue to support our profession and all it represents The RIBA Awards recognise how this unique relationship can deliver something truly special”. RIBA North West Regional Director, Andrew Ruffler, said: “With a record number of entries, and a shortlist of 17 quality buildings, the jury had an extremely difficult task in identifying those worthy of a RIBA North West regional award this year. In making their decisions it is great to see that that the jury has recognised projects from a wide regional geography, as well as different functions, scales and budgets. It is also highly encouraging to see that a significant number of the winning architects and their practices are based in the North West region, a trend which we hope continues.” Notes to editors: 1. For further press information, access to high resolution press images and the jury citations contact Andrew Ruffler; 07943 769 871 andrew.ruffler@riba.org or Marc Heuston; 0151 703 0107 marc.heuston@riba.org. 2. The 2016 RIBA North West regional awards are kindly sponsored by: 3. The full list of RIBA North West 2016 award-winners (in alphabetical order) are: Regional Awards Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, Liverpool by BDP HOME, Manchester by Mecanoo Library Walk Link Building, Manchester by Simpson Haugh and Partners Littlewoods Bunker, Liverpool by shedkm Manchester Central Library, Manchester by Ryder Architecture Mellor Primary School, Stockport by Sarah Wigglesworth Architects National Graphene Institute, Manchester by Jestico + Whiles Private House 1109, Cheshire by GA Studio Architects Private House, Cumbria by Bennetts Associates Wirral Metropolitan College, Wirral by Glenn Howells Architects Special Awards Conservation Award: Manchester Central Library Sustainability Award sponsored by Sika: Alder Hey Children’s Hospital Emerging Architect of the Year sponsored by Tarmac : GA Studio Architects (for Private House 1109) Architect of the Year: Eleanor Brough (for Mellor Primary School) Small Project of the Year: Private House 1109 Client of the Year: Manchester City Council (for HOME, Library Walk Link Building and Manchester Central Library) Building of the Year sponsored by Marley Eternit: Alder Hey Children’s Hospital 4. The RIBA Awards have been running continuously since 1966 and are judged and presented locally. No matter the shape, size, budget or location, RIBA award-winning schemes set the standard for great architecture all across the country. RIBA awards are for buildings in the UK by RIBA Chartered Architects and International Fellows. 5. The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) champions better buildings, communities and the environment through architecture and our members. www.architecture.com. Posted on Thursday 21st April 2016 Source link
Industry bodies give support to new BESA, ECA, and CBH survey Source link
Browser does not support script. Contact us The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is starting a new piece of work to find out what consumer and construction industry clients think of architects. A new ‘working with architects’ survey will be launched by RIBA Immediate Past President, Stephen Hodder MBE and the broadcaster Kevin McCloud at Grand Designs Live in London on 5 May. The findings will benchmark client attitudes, inform future RIBA policy, and for the first time gather a body of evidence which will demonstrate the value of working with architects. They will also give valuable insights into what clients want, information that architects can use to improve how they win and deliver work. There are two versions of the survey, one for private domestic consumer clients, and another for commercial clients. The findings for 2016 will be announced at Grand Designs Live and UK Construction Week in Birmingham in October. The survey will monitor attitudes, providing valuable up-to-date market intelligence for members and the profession as a whole. Jane Duncan, RIBA President, said, “I expect the results from this survey to help our profession develop their skills not just to remain relevant, but to continue to provide a significant and valuable leadership role and add creative innovation to the construction industry.” Stephen Hodder said, “This is a watershed moment for the RIBA. Investing in this kind of market intelligence gives our members the validated information they need to develop their professional service offering for the new era.” Kevin McCloud, broadcaster and client said, “Building is a much more collaborative process than it used to be and among the shifting sands of responsibilities it’s hugely important for clients to understand their roles and to communicate their experiences. The client-architect relationship remains the most powerful and most creative bond on a project; we need to find ways of nurturing it in a world where ways of building are evolving.” To participate in the survey visit: https://www.architecture.com/RIBA/Professionalsupport/RIBAforclients/workingwitharchitects.aspx ENDS Notes to editors The ’Working with architects’ client survey is an online questionnaire hosted on www.architecture.com that should take about 5 minutes to complete. The new survey marks a new phase in the work of the permanent RIBA Client Liaison Group, universally praised for seeking feedback from the client body. Their landmark ‘Client and Architect’ report in 2015 revealed opportunities available to architects prepared to adapt to clients’ changing needs. The Chair of the Client Liaison Group, Nigel Ostime of HawkinsBrown said, “This survey is a critical part of developing our understanding of what constitutes value to our clients. As the people who pay our fees, knowing what they think of us and monitoring our performance on issues that matter most to them is critical for our long-term commercial and, ultimately, professional wellbeing.” Grand Designs Live (GDL) London takes place 30 April – 8 May and includes the Ask an Expert feature, where 24 RIBA Chartered Practices will be on hand to provide free 30 minute consultations with clients, and the RIBA House of the Year feature, where models from the 2015 Channel 4 programme of the same name will be on display. The RIBA Client Liaison Group is chaired by Nigel Ostime of HawkinsBrown and includes Stephen Hodder MBE of Hodder Associates, RIBA Client Ambassador and immediate past president, Paul Morrell OBE, the government’s former chief construction adviser, and Dale Sinclair of AECOM. Client & Architect: developing the essential relationship was published last year. It reported on the findings of the Client Liaison Group’s roundtable meetings with client representatives from eleven different sectors. It distilled five keys themes that are of critical importance to clients: championing the vision; listening and understanding; engaging with people; delivering technical talent; and learning and improving. The whole report and summary write-ups from the roundtable meetings are available free from the RIBA for Clients pages on https://www.architecture.com/Files/RIBAProfessionalServices/ClientServices/RIBACLIENTSUPP[1].pdf The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) champions better buildings, communities and the environment through architecture and our members www.architecture.com – follow us on Twitter for regular RIBA updates www.twitter.com/RIBA Posted on Friday 29th April 2016 Source link
Balfour Beatty has been awarded a £170m two-year extension to its Track Partnership contract for London Underground. Track Partnership, an alliance between Balfour Beatty Rail and London Underground, is responsible for delivering track renewal work across the London Underground network. Balfour Beatty Rail was appointed to the initial contract in 2010, which included an option to extend for a further two years. The company will continue to provide design, labour, plant, and materials, as well as surveying, supervision and management of the works. The scope of works includes points & crossings and ballasted track renewal installation together with associated drainage, signalling, traction power and conductor rail works. The two-year extension takes the contract to March 2018. Balfour Beatty chief executive Leo Quinn said: “With world-class expertise in track, electrification and power supply systems, Balfour Beatty Rail is a significant player in the UK rail infrastructure market. We have utilised these market-leading skills and expertise working with London Underground over the last 13 years. This extension is a clear sign of London Underground’s confidence in the capability of Balfour Beatty within the Track Partnership.” This article was published on 24 Mar 2016 (last updated on 24 Mar 2016). Source link
Two leading investing companies known as Seedrs and Intebridge have united their support with the 2017 exciting new China Innovation & Entrepreneurship International Competition. Not your ordinary school raffle, this particular competition offers awards to entrants valuing to figures of up to a billion pounds, with 64 cash bursaries in the mix for the lucky winners and runner ups. With up to 10 different potential business winners available in the United Kingdom, the ten happy few will be transported by aeroplane to the affluent location of Shenzhen in China for the final stages of the lucrative competition. Hosted by the IEIC in this area of the global superpower, Shenzhen is indeed an ideal location for such awards, due to its proximity to the central business empire of the whole of the Asian continent that is Hong Kong. Indeed, the competition is open to entrants from all over the world and is committed to promoting good global relations between different businesses and enterprises. For the lucky British entrants, the first trials of the competition will take place in London on March 28th this year to eliminate the cocksure entrants who want to test their mettle and have a shot at the big prize. Of these entrants, three will be awarded cash prizes amounting to ten thousand pounds, and the best ten will then be taken to Shenzhen for the penultimate stages of the competition. Mr Jeff Lynn of Seedrs is delighted to play a leading role in the competition’s success, and those interested are urged to apply themselves to the juicy challenges of the competition and submit their applications. Potential entrants are wished good fortune in their quest and are advised to submit by Tuesday the 28th February when the timely barriers of the competition will close so that the competition can begin in London.
London’s skyline is set to change as AXA Investment Managers – Real Assets, acting on behalf of its clients, commence the main build of the Twentytwo development on Bishopsgate, scheduled for completion in 2019. Otis, whose founder invented the safety elevator, is the world’s leading manufacturer and maintainer of people-moving products, including elevators, escalators and moving walkways. Otis is a unit of United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX). With Lipton Rogers as developer and designed by PLP Architecture, the 59-storey building will use 67 state-of-the-art Otis elevators and escalators, including the fastest SkyRise double-deck elevators in Europe, traveling up to 8 metres per second. Twentytwo is being built by Multiplex on a prime site just minutes from the new Liverpool Street Crossrail station. At 255 metres (840 feet) tall, it will fill a gap at the center of the City’s eastern cluster of tall buildings. Once complete, this 1.4 million square foot office will be home to a workforce of approximately 12,000 people. Otis Limited, the local Otis entity, will install 57 elevators and 10 escalators, including 18 Gen2 elevators, 13 SkyRise single-deck, and 26 SkyRise double-deck elevators combined with the CompassPlus® destination management system. Lipton Rogers and Multiplex Construction will use three Otis SkyBuild™ self-climbing construction elevators to move people and goods faster and safely allow them to better manage the construction programme for the project. “With pressure on London’s infrastructure, combined with population growth, this new building is an intelligent response to the city’s evolving needs,” said Hemant Jolly, vice president and general manager, Otis UK & Ireland. “Otis is proud to support this evolution with our industry-leading technology, products and service.” The SkyBuild construction elevator is now a standard option in the company’s line of global, fully integrated suite of high-rise solutions – the SkyRise elevator system. Installed at the beginning of a building’s construction, the SkyBuild elevator allows movement of crews and tools quickly and safely – without an external lift or exposure to weather. Its unique hydraulic piston system enables it to quickly climb one floor at a time as the building rises. Once construction is complete, the SkyBuild elevator transitions for service as a SkyRise elevator, Otis’ premier elevator for the world’s tallest buildings. The Otis Gen2 elevator redefined the elevator industry with breakthrough technology that replaced conventional ropes with flat belts, leading to a more comfortable ride, greater reliability, more efficient operation and increased energy efficiency compared to conventional roped elevators. Since its introduction, Otis has sold more than a half million units making the Gen2 elevator one of the company’s best-selling elevators in its 163-year history.
From time to time, you’ll need to deploy a lick of paint in your business. Whether it’s for aesthetic or practical reasons – or both – a coating of paint is often needed to provide the finishing touch to machinery, buildings, vehicles and a host of other things. Yet, this isn’t as simple as painting at home. You can’t just pop to the local DIY store and pick up a tin and get cracking. Industrial paint work has to be carefully planned and executed to have the desired effect. Specifically, you need to think about cleaning, preparing your surface, picking the paint that will do the job for you and the method of application. Cleaning A dirty surface is one that is not fit for painting. Dirt, grease, dust or mould cannot just be painted over. This will simply store up a problem that could leave you in trouble down the line. Take the time to have a thorough clean of any surface – with particular attention to grease or mould – or your efforts will be undermined before they begin. Take a look at this video on YouTube to see some industrial grease removal in action and see what the process entails. Surface preparing Cleaning is only the start; a surface also needs thorough preparation. You might well want to remove the previous layer of paint or strip away any rust, for example, to return it to its original state. Such tasks can be carried out in controlled conditions in a blast cabinet. Without this, the paint that you apply might well not grip to the surface. Some paints carry a guarantee with them to last a certain length of time if they are applied after the right level of surface preparation. Choosing the right paint There are lots of factors that need to be considered when it comes to selecting the right paint for your job. First, you need to consider the surface – some paints are more suited to metal, plastic, wood, etc. Then you need to consider the environment that the surface will be exposed to. Specialist paint can handle exposure to the elements when positioned outdoors or the sorts of extreme temperatures that can occur in an industrial setting. Then, it’s time to consider aesthetics. Is your surface customer-facing? Does it need to display your branding? If this is the case then, clearly, the way that it looks matters too. How to apply the paint There’s more than one way to apply your chosen paint. This will depend on the paint and the surface in question, but it’s important to be aware of the different methods and their relative strengths. As this blog demonstrates, there are principally five different ways to get this done: sprays, rollers, dip coating, brushing or airless spraying. Take some time to research which of these is the most appropriate to your circumstances. Once you’re cleaned, prepared, painted and armed with the right paint and method of application you’re good to go.
The latest alarming revelations from the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) indicate that the amount of genuine building skills in the construction employee sector is getting worse as time goes by. The federal group found that the average British bricklayer is not the only one to suffer in the reduction of skills crisis that has plagued the building and construction industry. For example, the findings of the FMB indicate that 46 per cent of site managers and construction officials are finding it harder and harder to employ professionals to work on roofs. To make this trend worse, figures have shown that the level of plastering and electrical workers are lower than they have ever been in the last four years. Furthermore, the fact that there are less and less skilled workers operating in the construction industry in Britain is surely a sign that Theresa May and the government need to do something fast to rectify the situation before Britain runs out of skilled workers altogether. Mister Brian Berry, CE of the Federation of Master Builders, explains that the skills set in construction has significantly decreased in the past few years and is an issue that needs to be addressed. A lack of apprenticeships and the growing costs of training and materials is an alarming sign that many construction firms are in danger of losing many of their assets and acquisitions over the years, and Britain’s decision to leave the European Union will surely equally have an impact on the situation of building and construction in the country. The current fluctuations of the English Pound are also a worry for manufacturers in the country, and trade relations with the European Union will need be certified by the government so that the FMB does not have to report any more bad news for the construction industry. There is hope however that 2017 will be a wake-up call for the building industry to seek the government’s help to safeguard its future.
The stadia that host English premiership football matches are often seen as the physical representations of the titanic sporting and financial battles in one of the world’s most competitive leagues: the intimidating amphitheatre of the Etihad Stadium, the geometric confluence of the Emirates, the raucous intimacy of Selhurst Park and the traditional fortress that is Old Trafford. All of these arenas share at least one aspect of their construction – they all incorporate curved structural steel from metal bending and fabrication experts, Barnshaws Section Benders. Supplying steelwork for stadia is one of the most demanding applications for structural steel. The high safety requirements place stadia at CE Execution Class 3, one of the highest quality certifications for structural steel. Furthermore, due to their size, a large capacity is required to deliver typically hundreds of tonnes of sections to what are often exacting deadlines on each project. Stadia builds and upgrades are usually required to be finished before major events or at the beginning of a season, so that the investment made by clubs can be quickly recouped. Barnshaws Section Benders offers both high capacity and extensive production expertise which has enabled the business to service a wide range of stadium requirements, helping to deliver the world class facilities that the sport demands. Greg North, Commercial Director at Barnshaws Section Benders, explains how the demands are managed: “Most building projects are managed to strict timescales; new builds have investors to satisfy, refurbishments have shutdowns and redirects contributing to the cost and time pressure. Stadia however are a little different, if the ground isn’t finished the game won’t be played there, as football fixtures won’t wait. Our focus on precision and on-time delivery means that, like a top player, we can add value to a team effort and ensure a good result is delivered.” Projects for Premier League sides have included developing the roof over what is now known as the Sir Alex Ferguson stand at Manchester United’s Old Trafford; fabricating the cones for Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium and supplying roof tees for Arsenal’s Emirates – all in conjunction with contractor Severfield. Furthermore, Barnshaws aided in the redevelopment of Crystal Palace’s Selhurst Park roof with contractor Archbell Greenwood, a stadium that is regarded as one of the most atmospheric in the country. Recent projects include the relocation of West Ham to the ex-Olympic London Stadium including its 6,000 tonne roof and elements for the new Spurs ground adjacent to the original White Hart Lane. In addition, Barnshaws has been involved with a number of renovations for Championship and Football League sides, including Bristol City, Cardiff City, Coventry City, Ipswich Town, Maidstone Town, MK Dons, Nottingham Forest and Wigan Athletic. What differentiates Barnshaws contribution is the variation of the projects, ranging from supports for new floodlights, to terracing and roof structures – displaying the wide ranging expertise and experience inherent in the business. Barnshaws is regarded as the world’s most capable metal bending company, specialising specifically in precision curving of ferrous and non-ferrous products. Based in the Midlands, but with operations in the North of England, Scotland and in Europe, the business has supported the civil engineering, power generation, offshore, oil and gas, industrial, commercial vehicle and construction sectors since 1969. Stadiums have become as much an embodiment of the power of modern day football clubs as the accolades they accumulate. Every football club wants to present their home as a fortress to the away side, an atmosphere that owes much to the aesthetic capabilities of structural steel. Top clubs are in a financial as well as sporting battle, one which can be tipped by new stadiums or ground redevelopment to achieve maximum profitability. However beyond this, the lesson of modern football has been that world class facilities raise the standards of the sport, whether in the upper echelons or grassroots of the game. To service these projects requires the utmost expertise, capacity and flexibility – which has allowed Barnshaws to bend the rules when it comes to full service structural steel supply. With innovative suppliers helping to achieve these flagship engineering projects, the sport can be given further room to breathe and develop, which has seen the English Premier League eclipse its foreign competitors. This provides the perfect pedestal for what is the most competitive league in the world and one of the most passionate sporting cultures found anywhere – something that players, managers and most importantly fans, can all revel in every weekend.